Reinterpretation of Chinese Traditional Dwelling Culture—By Case of the Evolution of Shanghai Linonq Dwelling Forms in the Recent History

摘要

In the process of contemporary Chinese urbanization, the popularity of so-called international style and undue emphasis on people's material satisfaction constituted the main theme of Chinese modern dwelling design. These efforts not only failed to address people's basic cultural requirements for dwelling space, but also to provide an adequate cultural and ideological foundation for the new China. This paper is part of an ongoing research project on Chinese urban housing which will make an effort to examine and rethink urban dwelling design practice in China through case studies of some typical Chinese cities. The paper looks into Shanghai settlement forms which appeared in process of urbanization, and tries to explore them in terms of their inner structures. Through the investigation of Shanghai housing types in cultural context, developing modes and design principles underlying traditional and modern residential constructions, the study attempts to draw out elements which contributed to the unique features of the Chinese Jiangnan(江南) way of life. Although the spatial forms have frequently changed during the process of urbanization, the essence of living space has been internally preserved. We believe there will be a suitable way of adoption and combination of such valuable traditional design elements into modern housing design.